Chichester Board of Selectmen
SELECTMENíS MINUTES
January 27, 2009
MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman DeBold, Selectman MacCleery, Selectman Jordan and Administrator Lisa Stevens.
Department Heads present: David Kenneally, Road Agent; Patrick Clarke, Police Chief; Gil Vien, Fire Chief; John Martell, Emergency Management Director; Evelyn Pike, Town Clerk
Chairman DeBold opened the meeting at 7:00pm
EMD ñ Mr. Martell informed the Selectmen that he, Mr. Vien and Mr. Kenneally have a scheduled appointment next Tuesday to meet with representatives from FEMA to discuss the costs incurred by the town during the ice storm in December of 2008. The highway costs average $33,000 and the fire department costs are $6,000.
Mr. Martell pointed out a clarification for the minutes in regards to the donation of blankets for the emergency shelter. That donation also included twenty-four cots. Both cots and blankets were purchased from the Red Cross for $1.00.
Mr. Martell has been copied the denial letter from the State regarding the letter of Intent for FEMA Mitigation Funds for the Scheys property.
PD - Pat reported the insurance adjuster has looked at the cruiser recently involved in an accident when the officer struck a deer. This is the cruiser due to come out of service after town meeting and Pat is recommending only the minimum repairs be made.
HYW- All the trucks are up and running. The blazer is experiencing another electrical problem at the moment. Lisa reminded the Road Agent that the accident with the International on Depot Road has not been reported to LGC yet.
Town Clerk ñ Evelyn read a statement to the Board outlining behavior that took place during last years town elections in which one selectmen and one candidate spread untrue rumors slandering her reputation and questioning her ability to perform her job by insinuating that she showed favoritism by placing Jason Weir on the ballot above Jeff Jordan. Evelyn further stated neither individual spreading the rumors bothered to ask her the procedure or check for themselves with the Secretary of Stateís office. So to avoid that same situation repeating itself, Evelyn reported to the Board that the Assistant Secretary of State had randomly selected, just today, that the starting letter to list candidates on the ballot for this year is C. Last year the letter was T. Evelyn finished by stating
she was very offended by this act last year.
In response Selectman MacCleery stated the question was brought to him at school meeting and that he discussed the procedure with his fellow board members to learn the process, he didnít do anything further. Evelynís response was that she did not believe him.
FD -The department has secured an offer from Dalmatian Fire Equipment, to swap the out of service air packs for six new Scott amplifiers that fit into the new masks for the Scott air packs. These masks have a value of $275 each and will cost the town only a $10.00 shipping charge. The interested party is willing to arrange pickup of the old packs.
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Motion Selectman MacCleery, second Chairman DeBold to accept the deal from Dalmatian Fire Equipment, to swap the DRAGA SCBA breathing packs (13) for the (6) new Scott amplifiers. Motion passed unanimously.
BCEP will be placing a dumpster on site this week so the department can continue to remove the old equipment being stored at the station. Every attempt will be made to sell any equipment with a salvage value and throw away the rest.
Chief Vien submitted the corrected quote from AAA Emergency Supply for the replacement parts (Water Thief and Siamese Y) that have been damaged on one of the trucks. The $1300.00 cost was per part, the number 2 referenced on the sheet was referring to part number two, not quantity of two. Chief Vien was authorized at the December 23, 2008 Selectmenís meeting to purchase the parts from the lowest quote.
GENERAL BUSINESS/BOARD DISCUSSION:
Chairman DeBold shared the third quote received for an energy study from Peterson Engineering in Portsmouth. The quoted price sits between the other two received. Motion Selectman MacCleery, second Selectman Jordan, to accept the quote from Yeaton Engineering in Littleton, NH, for the cost of $3800, to perform an energy assessment of the HVAC system at the Safety building, based on agreement from the vendor to allow the town to defer payment for sixty days. Motion passed unanimously.
Selectman MacCleery informed the Board that in absence of a building inspector, he performed the rough inspection at the Stone property on Bear Hill Road.
Chairman DeBold polled the department heads present to query whether or not switching to the first and third Tuesdays of the month would create a scheduling problem for any of them. The Board would like to accommodate the prospective new hire, who has a conflicting commitment on his local planning board. No one had an issue with the change of schedule so effective February 3rd; the department heads will now meet with the Board on the first and third Tuesdays of every month.
Chairman DeBold shared a wage schedule he has drafted for the elected Road Agent position. This was reviewed briefly and taken under advisement for possible discussion later this evening.
Lisa introduced Wynette DeGroot and Butch Burbank, representatives from the Local Government Center, Risk Services division, who were here to attend the public hearing for the police department renovation project.
SUBJECT: Public Hearing ñ Police Department renovation
Present: Space Needs Committee members: Barbara Frangione, Fred Shaw, Earl Weir, Mike Paveglio, Lisa Drouse; Chief Clarke, Chief Vien, David Kenneally and 35 members of the general public.
Chairman DeBold opened the public hearing at 8:00pm by stating what he called was a public informational meeting to inform the public of the Boards intention to withdraw $29,000.00 from the Town Facilities Capital Reserve Fund, a fund which the town in 2007, voted the Selectmen agents of. At that time it was the wish of town meeting that any expenses over $4,000 require the Board to hold a public meeting to inform the public and receive the publicís input.
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Chief Clarke outlined the history of the events leading up to the request for funds. Initially identified in the Capital Improvement Plan for an expansion to the Safety Building in 2010, the project was immediately sidelined when findings of the Local Government Center, the Town's insurer, upon a facility inspection, cited critical liability issues with the current space: 1-only one entry/egress, 2-lack of sight/sound separation when interviewing, 3-inadequate weapons storage, and 4-only one bathroom shared by staff, detainees and the public. The Space Needs Committee, just appointed by the Board of Selectmen, realized that due to the shaky economic climate, now was not the time to propose a
building expansion that would cost upwards of $150,000. The committee had to focus on the acute short term needs and formulate a plan. Temporary space was considered: renting a commercial office space in town, modular office trailers to rent on-site or the purchase of an abandoned classroom modular unit which later turned out upon inspection to have several building deficiencies. Costs approached $20,000 - $40,000 per year with no return on the townís money once the police returned to permanent space. The committee settled on renovating the existing police space in the basement of the Safety Building, with some additional space graciously offered by the fire department. The handout depicts the conceptual plan the committee has decided upon. The costs, with an adequate contingency built in, are estimated at $29,000, utilizing all volunteer labor. Patrick thanked everyone for coming and added he is in need of additional
volunteers.
Chairman DeBold stated thanked Chief Vien and stated that Gil has been very accommodating and helpful throughout this process. The Chiefs have worked together on this project. Chairman DeBold summed it up by stating that it all comes back to the letter from LGC. The letter says it all, it has identified some serious issue that need to be addressed and it is imperative that we address them now and get this behind us. Chairman DeBold asked the committee members if they had anything to add.
Barbara Frangione pointed out that the fire department will have all the improved space turned back over to them when the police are relocated into permanent space.
Mike Paveglio pointed out that the fire department is not going to have any less space except the utility room is being reduced in size and they will be losing an extra bathroom.
At 8:10 discussion was opened to the approximately 40 citizens in attendance. Some citizen concerns:
~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~Would the Fire Department be losing critical space? No, the space being taken had only been used for non essential storage.
~~~~~~~~Do the funds for renovation include monies for police specific items like surveillance cameras? Yes and much of the existing equipment can continue to be used.
~~~~~~~~Where will the Police Department work during renovation? The Police Department will remain in the present location but also use some temporary space upstairs in the Fire Station. The project will proceed in stages with the Sally Port (blocking in a garage bay) being the first item to be constructed. The Police Chief and Fire Chief have been working cooperatively on details of accommodation.
~~~~~~~~What is the time frame of the project? Chief Clarke wants to begin soon with an end of summer finish date projected. This is a slow time for builders and other volunteers who are needed for the project.
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The air compressor is an essential piece of equipment for the Fire Department and will need to be moved. Is there any safety concern? The compressor does need to be moved several feet and will be housed in a better location to reduce the loud noise when running. The compressor and any other vital Fire Department equipment will be moved, re-installed, and put back into service as quickly as possible.
The committee has discussed logistics and all the little things that need to be coordinated for a smooth work schedule.
~~~~~~~~Will vehicles need to be stored outside? Chief Vien stated that one additional, non-essential; gas truck will be parked outside. The OHRV will be housed at the Loudon station temporarily.
~~~~~~~~Is $29,000 enough or will the committee be coming back for more to cover overages and unexpected problems? The budget request has a sufficient overage contingency built in although the committee hopes to complete the project for less given the amount of projected volunteer labor, both skilled and unskilled.
~~~~~~~~Is this a temporary fix? Chairman DeBold stated this is a temporary solution, temporary being three to five years but reminded the body that the police were moved to the current ìtemporaryî location ten years ago.
~~~~~~~~Several citizens commended the committee for their hard work and a well thought out plan citing such comments as ñ
Only one means of egress abysmal; officer safety is critical; in favor of the staging process of the renovations; all scenarios were considered; hope the committee extends their work beyond the police station to all town buildings.
There appeared to be no opposition to the proposal and, at 8:30, Chairman DeBold made the following motion, to authorize the expenditure of up to and not exceeding $29, 000, from the Town Facilities Capital Reserve Fund for the purposes of the renovation of the existing Police Department office space and additional space located on the lower level of the Safety Building. This renovation is necessary to address and correct numerous liability issues within the existing Police Department office space as identified by representatives of the NH Local Government Center, Risk Management Section. Selectman Jordan seconded the motion and the entire room voted in the affirmative. Motion passed overwhelmingly. Chief Clarke again thanked everyone for coming. Chairman DeBold closed the public
hearing at 8:35pm.
GENERAL BUSINESS/BOARD DISCUSSION:
Chief Clarke asked the Board to consider appointing Mike Paveglio as clerk of the works for the police renovation project. This will be a volunteer position. Motion Chairman DeBold, second Selectman MacCleery, to appoint Mike Paveglio as Clerk of the Works for the Police Department Renovation Project with authorization to purchase material and submit bills for payment, co-signed by Chief Clarke. All were in favor, motion passes.
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David Colbert asked to address the Board for an update to any discussion or decision the Board has had regarding the establishment of a Wage Scale for the Road Agent salary.
Chairman DeBold has drafted a Wage Level Classification Summary listing three skill levels with appropriate step increases depending upon skill, education and experience. However the Board has not had sufficient time to discuss it. Chairman DeBold stated this is only the second election where the scope of the job has grown to this, it is Chairman DeBoldís opinion that this makes sense and is reasonable for this year; the Board of Selectmen set the pay rate. Selectman Jordan stated he liked what Richard has come up with.
Mr. Colbert thanked the Board for their time in researching this matter and commented that in his opinion someone running for the position would want to know the pay rate.
Chairman DeBold stated that while preparing the pay tables, he did not want the lowest level to pay less than the current subordinates are making and set the level accordingly. These pay tables should be appropriate unless the town switches back to contracting out all the work and the Road Agent position reverts to an administrative only position working less than forty hours per week.
Selectman MacCleery commented on the great work Richard had done and the Board agreed to review again during the week and vote on this issue next Tuesday night.
The Boar directed Lisa to forward the budget documents to Moderator Hall and confirm his attendance at the public hearing next week.
The Board discussed the Ms-6 figures minus the two road articles not recommended for funding. The Board questioned whether any additional monies are included in the highway departmentís operating budget related to performing those road projects. The Board directed Lisa to formally request the outstanding Final Report from CLD Engineering for the Center Road project.
Selectman MacCleery briefly shared information he heard from a news report relative to the Town of Merrimackís winter budget. The Board directed Lisa to research this news item and gain the following information; number of plow trucks; sand/salt budget; overall budget; miles of road; size of highway department.
The Selectmen discussed town counsel being consulted regarding the Road Agent salary. Selectman MacCleery inquired whether one selectman had acted independently. Lisa responded, no she had after getting no response from her inquiry to LGC. This led to a brief discussion of the prior Boardís policy that prior approval by a majority of the Board is needed prior to approaching town counsel and incurring the expense. Chairman DeBold discussed giving discretion/judgment to the Town Administrator to contact counsel rather than having to wait a week when the Board meets again. The Board agreed to authorize the Town Administrator to contact town counsel at her discretion provided she report her reason, discussion and outcome to the Board at their next meeting.
Selectman Jordan asked the Chairman for some clarification of the proposed zoning amendment, establishing a Noise Ordinance. Chairman DeBold explained that due to recent issue that have come before the Planning Board such as the hucksters expansion, adding go-carts, the PB thought it appropriate to adopt this ordinance.
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The Board reviewed an email from Doug Hall, Capital Improvement Program Committee member indicating he had contacted Mr. Brian Boyer about filling the vacancy on the committee. The Board directed Lisa to invite Mr. Boyer to meet with the Board.
Mail and correspondence were reviewed. Accounts payable and payroll were signed.
Being no further business for this evening, Chairman DeBold adjourned the meeting at 9:45PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Lisa Stevens Approved As Corrected
Administrator 2/3/09
______________________ _______________________ _______________________
Richard DeBold, Chairman Stephen MacCleery Jeffrey Jordan
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